The case in summary: The organization 4 Day Global wants to introduce a four-day working week in Norway, where employees receive full pay even if they work shorter days or weeks. Experience from other countries shows that such an arrangement can reduce sickness absence, increase well-being, make it easier to retain and recruit employees, and increase turnover. Project manager for 4 Day Global in Norway, Sarah Uldal, is in the process of recruiting Norwegian companies that want to participate in the project. However, NHO is skeptical of the idea, and believes that part-time with full pay will deprive companies and the Norwegian community of income. Uldal, who has experienced burnout himself, believes that a four-day working week can make working life more sustainable, especially for parents of young children and others who need more flexibility. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – I would happily have agreed to a four-day week with full pay, says Lenita Johansen (29). She is on a trolley ride in the center of Kristiansand with her son Jesper (10 months) in the pram. The 29-year-old returned from leave in April and started a full-time job as a dental hygienist. It didn’t take long. – I quickly realized that it had to be 80 percent work with a day off in the middle of the week. I enjoy that day, says Johansen. Admittedly, she does not get paid for the day off. Three miles away from the center of Kristiansand, where Jesper’s mother has just gone swimming with her son, sits Sarah Uldal (35). She is project manager for the non-profit organization 4 Day Week Global in Norway. If Uldal gets what she wants, Johansen and other employees can get full pay even if they work six-hour days or four days a week. Sarah Uldal works both from home and from an office community in Lillesand. She really appreciates flexible days and usually works from 08:00 to 14:00. Photo: Heidi Ditlefsen / news Sick leave decreased The organization works to help companies transition to six-hour days or four-day working weeks. It must happen without it being at the expense of productivity or turnover. Uldal says that their experiences are good on a worldwide basis and highlights the following effects: Absenteeism due to sickness is decreasing. Well-being goes up. Companies find it easier to retain employees. It is easier to recruit employees. – A large study from England shows that the companies that participated increased their turnover by 36 per cent on average. Could you imagine working a shorter working week and getting full pay? Yes of course! I think it’s way too busy to work full time! No, absolutely not. I enjoy working every single day. Show result Have your say on this further down in the matter. Uldal is now in the process of recruiting Norwegian companies that want to be involved. The project starts in September. She says that they are looking for companies that want to test it out and contribute to research into the effects of a four-day week. 4 Day Week Global A non-profit organization whose ambition is to make four-day weeks or shorter working days the new standard worldwide. Was founded in New Zealand in 2019. Since 2022, the organization has guided around 250 companies and over 6,000 employees through the program. In 2024, the focus is on Europe. Sweden, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Italy are some of the countries receiving their first studies. The aim is to include companies from different industries and of different sizes. The companies that join start with an eight-week “onboarding process” in September, during which detailed planning takes place. In November, they move into a six-month pilot phase where they will apply the plans in their new everyday work. – A marathon, not a sprint The company Kaizen Consult in Os outside Bergen will be involved in the project this autumn. Managing director Elin Huseby is highly motivated before the start-up. – I think there needs to be another change in working life. In any case, I myself know of an everyday life that does not improve, with a high stress factor and a high heart rate every single day, says Huseby. She and colleague Ellen Marie Westvik both have two young children. Huseby believes that shorter working days or a shorter working week will be profitable because employees who feel good perform better at work. – This job is a marathon, not a sprint. We will deliver over a long period of time and as it is important that it is sustainable. I have more faith in that than that we should burn ourselves out. Elin Huseby (tv) and Ellen Marie Westvik are looking forward to being part of the four-day week project from September. Photo: Private Sarah Uldal finds that many companies make contact and are interested, but the actual recruitment is a bit slow. She thinks more people want to wait one round and see how it goes with the companies that join now. – It is natural because it is such a new way of thinking compared to the traditional working life, she says. Went on a spree himself Uldal experienced being burnt out in autumn 2020. A combination of the corona pandemic, small children, a lot of stress at work and lack of sleep led to the spree. – I had a panic attack at work, was completely empty and ended up driving home crying. There was simply nothing left of me. The 35-year-old ended up being on sick leave for a year. When she returned to her new job, she wanted to create a change in working life. – I want to make it more sustainable. Perhaps especially for parents of young children, but also for others who are in a life situation where they need more flexibility. Via her own podcast Work-life balance with Sarah, she came into contact with the global leader of 4 Day Week Global. It ended with a job in the organization. Sarah Uldal herself works six-hour days and says that this results in lower shoulders in everyday life. – I wish everyone who struggles with time pressure to have this flexibility. Photo: Heidi Ditlefsen / news – I think my commitment shone through in that podcast conversation because afterwards he asked me if I was interested in taking this to Norway, she says and smiles. – How can it be profitable for companies that the employees work 80 percent with full pay? – In the main, it’s about working smarter. The freedom you get is linked to doing your job smarter in the four remaining days. Housework at weekends Mother of small children Lenita Johansen in Kristiansand is well aware of the tension between work and family life. – I wanted more time with my son. I also don’t want to spend the whole Saturday doing the laundry and vacuuming, she says. Lenita Johansen uses her day off to do housework that is piling up, or to come up with cozy activities with her son. Photo: Heidi Ditlefsen / news At Bystranda, news meets Mads Blandtjenn Mersland (27) with friends. The 27-year-old works as a substitute in a nursery through a temporary agency. He could well imagine a shorter working week for full pay. – With the flexible job I have now, I have actually operated with a four-day week already. I notice that it is simply what the body needs, he says. Mads Blandkjenn Mersland and his girlfriend Ida Moldestad are enjoying a day off at Bystranda in Kristiansand with friends. Photo: Heidi Ditlefsen / news NHO: – Not a good idea NHO does not applaud the four-day week with full pay. Director for working life and collective bargaining Nina Melsom believes that part-time with full pay will deprive companies and the Norwegian community of income. – Part-time with full pay is not a good idea. It will impose high costs on the companies and going forward we will need more labour, not less, says Melsom. Director for working life and collective bargaining at NHO Nina Melsom believes that the most important thing is to find solutions that look after the individual in the workplace. Photo: Moment Studio She points out that the individual is free to ask to reduce working hours and work part-time. – The Working Environment Act also has this as a solution for, among other things, employees with health challenges or small children. It is a choice that the individual must make himself. What do you think about working shorter days and getting full pay? Hello! Welcome to dialogue at news. Since you are logged in to other news services, you do not have to log in again here, but we need your consent to our terms of use for online dialogue Published 11.06.2024, at 21.31
ttn-69
4 Day Global will test the four-day working week in Norway – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
